[Non-invasive explorations of the carotid arteries (author's transl)].

For the non-invasive evaluation of patients suspected of having extracranial carotid artery disease, the non-invasive vascular laboratory at the Lahey Clinic, Boston, Massachusetts uses three tests. Carotid phonoangiography (C.P.A.) by itself is 60% accurate, the Kartchner-McRae Oculoplethysmograph (O.P.G.) by itself 80% accurate, and the Echoflow doppler arterial imager, by itself 90% accurate. These examinations are used for surveillance of high-risk patients and to determine the need for carotid arteriography. In a series of 94 patients, the combination of these non-invasive methods yielded one false negative and 2 false positive studies, for an overall accuracy of 95%.